Impact of the war, the political crises of October to November 1918, and the establishment of the Weimar Constitution Flashcards
The abdication of the Kaiser, The establishment of the Weimar Constitution in 1919
Abdication of the Kaiser announced
1.30 pm November 9th 1918
10th November 1918
Kaiser fled to Holland
President Wilson’s 14 points
- No Secret Agreements
- Free Navigation of Seas
- Free Trade
- Reduce Weapons
- All Decisions about colonies should be Fair
- German Army Removed from Russia
Russia Must Develop own Political Structure. - Belgium Independent
- Germany Leave France and
Give back Alsace-Lorraine - All Italians Allowed to live in Italy.
- Self-Determination for those in Austria-Hungary.
- Self-Determination and Independence
for the Balkan states. - The Turkish people have Turkish government.
Non-Turks in Old Turkish Empire Govern themselves. - Poland Independent with
Access to the Sea. - A League of Nations Set Up
October Reforms 1918
Ludendorff advised the Kaiser to make reforms to the democracy in order to get better peace terms and accept the 14 points from President Wilson: This basically ended the Kaiser’s rule.
*Prince Max Of Baden appointed chancellor
He made a new government
The Peace Note
3rd October 1918. A message sent from chancellor Prince Max von Baden to President Wilson asking for an armistice.
Peace Note was an…
admission of defeat
Naval mutiny at Wilhelmshaven
30th October 1918
3rd November 1918
Naval mutiny spread to Kiel
8th November 1918
Revolt in Bavaria led to declaration of Bavarian Socialist Republic (Bavarian monarchy collapses)
10th November 1918
Ebert-Groener Pact
11th November 1918
Armistice signed
26th October- 5th November 1918
Strikes and demonstrations across Germany
1st October 1918
Prince Max of Baden formed new government
30th September 1918
Kaiser promised political reform
29th September 1918
Ludendorff called for armistice negotiations
socialist groups and parties in 1918
Sparacist League(no ww1, minority spd group), USPD (no ww1, minority spd group), SPD (support ww1)
6th December 1918
Soldiers fire upon a Spartacist demonstration killing 16 people
23-24th December 1918
sailors revolt against the government in Berlin
6th January 1919
Spartacist Uprising
Strengths of the Weimar Constitution
- democratic system meant that no group could hold absolute power
- voting age was reduced to 21 for men and women
- presidential elections were held every 7 years
Weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
- proportional representation made it very difficult for a chancellor to get a majority
- this made decision-making slow and indecisive as chancellors need coalitions to gain a majority
- it gave representation in the Reichstag to extremist parties
- Article 48 - the president had the power to suspend the Constitution and govern by decree
- many important groups, such as the civil service and extremist parties did not support it
19th January 1919
Ebert is president Scheidemann is chancellor, constituent assembly
26th October 1918
Ludendorff resigned and fled to Sweden
6th November 1918
Soldiers and workers took control of cities like Munich and Hamburg
What date did the Kaiser abdicate?
9th November 1918
What was the name of President Wilson’s list of factors needed to negotiate a peace between countries?
Wilson’s 14 Points
Who was Ludendorff?
A German Military General
Who was Prince Max of Baden?
The Chancellor of Germany from September to November 1919. He shared power with the Kaiser- marking the end of the Kaisers autocratic ruling. Max was also the Kaisers cousin
On October 3rd, he wrote a peace note to President Wilson asking for an armistice. Wilson took nearly 3 weeks to reply. What did he demand in his response?
- withdrawal of military from occupied territory
-End of submarine warfare
What happened with the naval ships at Wilhelmshaven on 28th October?
They refused to attack British ships, leading to a naval mutiny
What was set up in Kiel after the mutiny at the Naval base on the 3rd November?
A workers and soldiers council
In which German state was the monarchy overthrown and a republic claimed on 8th November?
Bavaria